Why so little love for the film that would go on to have the best-stelling opening weekend of all time, then? The Defense Department's Hollywood liaison (that's a real position) said the government was concerned about the vague authority of S.H.I.E.L.D., the Samuel L. Jackson-led international peacekeeping / spy-ish organization (please don't write us letters!) that brings together the Avengers to do Avenger-y things.

"We couldn’t reconcile the unreality of this international organization and our place in it," Phil Strub told Wired. “To whom did S.H.I.E.L.D. answer? Did we work for S.H.I.E.L.D.? We hit that roadblock and decided we couldn’t do anything."

Indeed. Cars that turn into robots that think for themselves and wage war on humans? Real enough. Demigods and superheroes? Get out of town.

"In the end, it's the community working together, without the real egomaniacal leader," he added. "It's going to take all of us working together, with all of our strengths. We don't need to dominate to move forward. We need to work together. Everyone has their own strengths and their own talents. We can all benefit from one another."

The government's noncompliance notwithstanding, a few U.S. military apparati did make it into the film. F-22 Raptors are spotted during the movie, as are what appear to be F-35 Joint Strike Fighters. What gives? Strub said Marvel "digitally inserted" the jets into the footage.

'The Avengers' & The Pentagon: Why The U.S. Government Decided To Bail On The Film

Summer Movie Preview 2012

Summer Movie Preview 2012

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'Marvel's The Avengers'

<strong>Release Date</strong>: May 4
<br><br><strong>Cast</strong>: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson
<br><br><strong>Why You're Excited</strong>: Because it's The Avengers! Following five movies of set-up ("Iron Man," "Iron Man 2," "The Incredible Hulk," "Thor" and "Captain America: First Avenger"), Marvel combines its superheroes into one blockbuster. Early word on "The Avengers" has been strong, and the film is already an international hit. You should probably get your tickets now, if you haven't already.
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[Photo: Disney]